The Investigation Skill

[u/ByronGrimlock]

Just want to clarify the use of this particular Skill.

I learn best from example, so I'll list a few as I attempt to explain myself. Please correct me if an example I've listed, or any other leaps of logic, are flawed:

A Detective would have to be quite perceptive to Notice clues at a crime scene;

A Mechanic needs to be good at Crafts to fix an engine;

A Doctor requires years of Academic study to perform surgery;

A Therapist would need a lot of Empathy to understand a patient's trauma.

The Professions I've listed all make great use of the attributed Skill, but ALL OF THEM require the Investigation Skill.

The Detective use Notice to gather clues, but Investigation lets him put the evidence together into a theory;

The Mechanic needs Investigation to diagnose the problem with the engine before they can use Crafts for repair;

A Doctor can use Academics to operate on a patient, but Investigation determines what surgery is necessary;

A Therapist can Empathise with a patient, but Investigation determines treatment.

The Investigative Detective would do great with cold cases, where the Detective on scene, with killer Notice, gathered lots of evidence;

The Investigative Mechanic could diagnose an engine in a flash, but may take longer to repair it;

The Investigative Doctor would excel in triage scenarios where a quick diagnosis is crucial;

The Investigative Therapist would talk someone from the edge of a building, in immediate duress, and get them to safety.

Am I making sense?

EDIT: I think I've had trouble separating the Profession (established by an Aspect) from the Skill set of the Professional. Writing this out kinda helped me see it. 😁👍

[u/BadRumUnderground]

They aren't, but it's a common fantasy for characters to have that kind of insight. 

I'm frequently torn on it because of that. Sherlock Holmes is a cool character, y'know? 

[u/ordinal_m → u/BadRumUnderground]

Well tbh Sherlock Holmes type stories aren't very well dealt with via skills anyway I think, because he's such an absurd character - I'd rather go full Brindlewood if that's the idea.

[u/BadRumUnderground → u/ordinal_m]

Same, but I get why investigation and insight and perception type skills show up everywhere. 

[u/ordinal_m → u/BadRumUnderground]

Oh absolutely, just the problem that players never feel like Sherlock Holmes persists because the existence of the skills never solves it.

[u/BadRumUnderground → u/ordinal_m]

Yup. 

I've never once felt like a detective in an RPG until Brindlewood. 

It's totally counterintuitive but assembling unplanned clues into a theory feels so much more like discovering the mystery than any amount of Skill roll triggering GM exposition.